8730 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 27 / Thursday, February 8, 2024 / Notices 

1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1). 

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

3 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A). 

4 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(4). 

5Capitalized terms used herein and not defined 

shall have the meaning assigned to such terms in 

the MBSD Rules, available at www.dtcc.com/legal/ 

rules-and-procedures.aspx. 

6See MBSD Rule 4 (Clearing Fund and Loss 

Allocation), supra note 5. FICC’s market risk 

management strategy is designed to comply with 

Rule 17Ad–22(e)(4) under the Act, where these 

risks are referred to as ‘‘credit risks.’’ 17 CFR 

240.17Ad–22(e)(4). 

7See MBSD Rule 17 (Procedures for When the 

Corporation Ceases to Act), supra note 5. 

3642 and 3632(b)(3), on January 30, 

2024, it filed with the Postal Regulatory 

Commission a USPS Request to Add 

Priority Mail & USPS Ground 

Advantage® Contract 178 to 

Competitive Product List. Documents 

are available at www.prc.gov, Docket 

Nos. MC2024–171, CP2024–177. 

Sean Robinson, 

Attorney, Corporate and Postal Business Law. 

[FR Doc. 2024–02537 Filed 2–7–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7710–12–P 

POSTAL SERVICE 

Product Change—Priority Mail and 

USPS Ground Advantage® Negotiated 

Service Agreement 

AGENCY: Postal ServiceTM. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Postal Service gives 

notice of filing a request with the Postal 

Regulatory Commission to add a 

domestic shipping services contract to 

the list of Negotiated Service 

Agreements in the Mail Classification 

Schedule’s Competitive Products List. 

DATES: Date of required notice: February 

8, 2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Sean Robinson, 202–268–8405. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

United States Postal Service® hereby 

gives notice that, pursuant to 39 U.S.C. 

3642 and 3632(b)(3), on February 1, 

2024, it filed with the Postal Regulatory 

Commission a USPS Request to Add 

Priority Mail & USPS Ground 

Advantage® Contract 182 to 

Competitive Product List. Documents 

are available at www.prc.gov, Docket 

Nos. MC2024–179, CP2024–185. 

Sean Robinson, 

Attorney, Corporate and Postal Business Law. 

[FR Doc. 2024–02530 Filed 2–7–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7710–12–P 

POSTAL SERVICE 

Product Change—Priority Mail 

Express, Priority Mail, and USPS 

Ground Advantage® Negotiated 

Service Agreement 

AGENCY: Postal ServiceTM. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Postal Service gives 

notice of filing a request with the Postal 

Regulatory Commission to add a 

domestic shipping services contract to 

the list of Negotiated Service 

Agreements in the Mail Classification 

Schedule’s Competitive Products List. 

DATES: Date of required notice: February 

8, 2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Sean C. Robinson, 202–268–8405. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

United States Postal Service® hereby 

gives notice that, pursuant to 39 U.S.C. 

3642 and 3632(b)(3), on January 30, 

2024, it filed with the Postal Regulatory 

Commission a USPS Request to Add 

Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail & 

USPS Ground Advantage® Contract 44 

to Competitive Product List. Documents 

are available at www.prc.gov, Docket 

Nos. MC2024–173, CP2024–179. 

Sean C. Robinson, 

Attorney, Corporate and Postal Business Law. 

[FR Doc. 2024–02543 Filed 2–7–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7710–12–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–99462; File No. SR–FICC– 

2024–002] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Fixed 

Income Clearing Corporation; Notice of 

Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of 

Proposed Rule Change to Clarify How 

FICC Applies the Minimum Charge 

February 2, 2024. 

Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the 

Securities Exchange Act of 1934 

(‘‘Act’’) 1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2

notice is hereby given that on January 

25, 2024, Fixed Income Clearing 

Corporation (‘‘FICC’’) filed with the 

Securities and Exchange Commission 

(‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule 

change as described in Items I, II and III 

below, which Items have been prepared 

by the clearing agency. FICC filed the 

proposed rule change pursuant to 

Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act 3 and Rule 

19b–4(f)(4) thereunder.4 The 

Commission is publishing this notice to 

solicit comments on the proposed rule 

change from interested persons. 

I. Clearing Agency’s Statement of the 

Terms of Substance of the Proposed 

Rule Change 

The proposed rule change consists of 

modifications to the FICC MortgageBacked Securities Division (‘‘MBSD’’) 

Clearing Rules (‘‘MBSD Rules’’) to 

clarify how FICC applies the Minimum 

Charge (as defined below) at MBSD, as 

well as make certain technical changes, 

as described in greater detail below.5

II. Clearing Agency’s Statement of the 

Purpose of, and Statutory Basis for, the 

Proposed Rule Change 

In its filing with the Commission, the 

clearing agency included statements 

concerning the purpose of and basis for 

the proposed rule change and discussed 

any comments it received on the 

proposed rule change. The text of these 

statements may be examined at the 

places specified in Item IV below. The 

clearing agency has prepared 

summaries, set forth in sections A, B, 

and C below, of the most significant 

aspects of such statements. 

(A) Clearing Agency’s Statement of the 

Purpose of, and Statutory Basis for, the 

Proposed Rule Change 

1. Purpose 

FICC is proposing changes that would 

clarify the disclosures in the MBSD 

Rules related to FICC’s application of 

Minimum Charge at MBSD. 

Background 

As part of its market risk management 

strategy, FICC manages its credit 

exposure to Clearing Members by 

determining the appropriate Required 

Fund Deposit to the Clearing Fund and 

monitoring its sufficiency, as provided 

for in the MBSD Rules.6 The Required 

Fund Deposit serves as each Clearing 

Member’s margin. The objective of a 

Clearing Member’s Required Fund 

Deposit is to mitigate potential losses to 

FICC associated with liquidation of a 

Clearing Member’s portfolio in the event 

FICC ceases to act for that Clearing 

Member (hereinafter referred to as a 

‘‘default’’).7 The aggregate of all Clearing 

Member’s Required Fund Deposits, 

together with certain other deposits 

required under the MBSD Rules, 

constitutes the Clearing Fund, which 

FICC would access, among other 

instances, should a defaulting Clearing 

Member’s own Clearing Fund deposit be 

insufficient to satisfy losses to FICC 

caused by the liquidation of that 

Clearing Member’s portfolio. 

Pursuant to the MBSD Rules, each 

Clearing Member’s Required Fund 

Deposit amount consists of a number of 


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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 27 / Thursday, February 8, 2024 / Notices 8731 

8MBSD Rule 4. Supra note 5. 9Section 2(b) of MBSD Rule 4 provides the 

Minimum Charge for each margin portfolio of a 

Clearing Member shall be no less than $100,000, 

and the Minimum Charge for each margin portfolio 

of an Unregistered Investment Pool Clearing 

Member shall be no less than $1 million. 10 In order to mitigate exposure from certain 

market conditions and other financial and 

operational capabilities of a Clearing Member, FICC 

may impose a special charge. 

11 15 U.S.C. 78q–1(b)(3)(F). 

12 Id. 

applicable components, each of which 

is designed to address specific risks 

faced by FICC, as identified within 

MBSD Rule 4.8 Specifically, MBSD Rule 

4, Section 2(b) currently states that each 

Clearing Member’s Required Fund 

Deposit amount consists of the greater of 

(i) the Minimum Charge 9 or (ii) the sum 

of the following components: the VaR 

Charge, the six days’ interest for Fails 

item, a special charge (to the extent 

determined by FICC to be 

appropriate),10 and, if applicable, the 

Backtesting Charge, Holiday Charge, 

Intraday Mark-to-Market Charge, 

Intraday VaR Charge, and the Margin 

Liquidity Adjustment Charge. 

Some of these components are 

calculated at the margin portfolio level 

while other components are calculated 

at the member level. In particular, the 

Minimum Charge, the VaR Charge and 

the six days’ interest for Fails item are 

calculated for each margin portfolio of 

a Clearing Member, while the special 

charge and, if applicable, the 

Backtesting Charge, Holiday Charge, 

Intraday Mark-to-Market Charge, 

Intraday VaR Charge, and the Margin 

Liquidity Adjustment Charge are 

assessed with respect to each Clearing 

Member. 

Given that these components are 

calculated at varying levels, i.e., margin 

portfolio level vs. member level, FICC 

currently follows a two-step process 

when determining the Required Fund 

Deposit amount for a Clearing Member. 

Specifically, when calculating the 

Required Fund Deposit amount for a 

Clearing Member, FICC first assesses the 

applicable charge with respect to each 

and every margin portfolio of the 

Clearing Member. FICC determines 

whether or not to apply the Minimum 

Charge to the margin portfolio by 

comparing (i) the relevant Minimum 

Charge for the margin portfolio with (ii) 

the sum of the VaR Charge and the six 

days’ interest for Fails item of the 

margin portfolio. FICC only applies the 

Minimum Charge as the applicable 

charge for a margin portfolio when the 

Minimum Charge for the margin 

portfolio exceeds the sum of the VaR 

Charge and the six days’ interest for 

Fails item of the margin portfolio, 

otherwise FICC uses the sum of the VaR 

Charge and the six days’ interest for 

Fails item of the margin portfolio as the 

applicable charge for the margin 

portfolio. 

After FICC assesses the applicable 

charge with respect to each and every 

margin portfolio of the Clearing 

Member, FICC aggregates these charges 

and add the components that are 

calculated at the member level, i.e., 

special charge, if any, and, if applicable, 

the Backtesting Charge, Holiday Charge, 

Intraday Mark-to-Market Charge, 

Intraday VaR Charge, and the Margin 

Liquidity Adjustment Charge, to 

determine the Required Fund Deposit 

amount of the Clearing Member. 

Proposed Rule Changes 

In order to better reflect FICC’s 

current process in determining the 

Required Fund Deposit amount of a 

Clearing Member, particularly with 

respect to FICC’s application of 

Minimum Charge, FICC is proposing the 

following clarifying rule changes. 

Specifically, FICC is proposing to 

revise the Minimum Margin definition 

in the MBSD Rule 1 (Definitions) to 

state the term ‘‘Minimum Charge’’ 

means the minimum amount of required 

deposit to the Clearing Fund with 

respect to each margin portfolio of a 

Clearing Member. FICC is proposing this 

change to make it clearer that the 

Minimum Margin is determined with 

respect to each and every margin 

portfolio of a Clearing Member. 

FICC is also proposing to modify the 

definition of the Required Fund Deposit 

in MBSD Rule 1 to make it clearer that 

Required Fund Deposit means the 

amount of each Clearing Member’s 

required deposit to the Clearing Fund as 

determined by the FICC pursuant to 

Section 2 of Rule 4 and other applicable 

Rules. 

In addition, FICC is proposing to 

revise Section 2 of MBSD Rule 4 

(Clearing Fund and Loss Allocation) to 

more clearly delineate components that 

are calculated at the margin portfolio 

level versus those that are calculated at 

the member level when determining the 

Required Fund Deposit amount of each 

Clearing Member. Furthermore, FICC is 

proposing language to clarify that, when 

determining the amount of Required 

Fund Deposit with respect to each 

margin portfolio of a Clearing Member, 

FICC would use an amount equal to the 

greater of (i) the Minimum Charge and 

(ii) the sum of the VaR Charge and the 

six days’ interest for Fails item of the 

margin portfolio. 

To further enhance the clarity of 

MBSD Rules, FICC is also proposing a 

number of technical changes and one 

conforming change. 

These proposed rule changes are 

intended to better reflect FICC’s current 

process in determining the Required 

Fund Deposit amount of a Clearing 

Member but would not change the 

Required Fund Deposit amount of the 

Clearing Member or the methodology 

used to calculate the Required Fund 

Deposit. 

2. Statutory Basis 

Section 17A(b)(3)(F) of the Act 

requires, in part, that the MBSD Rules 

be designed to promote the prompt and 

accurate clearance and settlement of 

securities transactions.11 FICC believes 

the proposed clarifying and technical 

changes to the MBSD Rules would allow 

FICC to help promote prompt and 

accurate clearance and settlement of 

securities transactions. This is because 

the proposed changes to the MBSD 

Rules would clarify and improve the 

transparency of the MBSD Rules. 

Enhancing the clarity and transparency 

of the MBSD Rules would help Clearing 

Members to better understand their 

rights and obligations regarding FICC’s 

clearance and settlement services. FICC 

believes that when Clearing Members 

better understand their rights and 

obligations regarding FICC’s clearance 

and settlement services, they can act in 

accordance with the MBSD Rules. FICC 

believes that better enabling Clearing 

Members to comply with the MBSD 

Rules would promote the prompt and 

accurate clearance and settlement of 

securities transactions by FICC. As such, 

FICC believes the proposed clarifying 

and technical changes are consistent 

with Section 17A(b)(3)(F) of the Act.12

(B) Clearing Agency’s Statement on 

Burden on Competition 

FICC does not believe the proposed 

rule changes would have any impact on 

competition. The proposed rule changes 

would enhance the MBSD Rules by 

providing additional clarity and 

transparency, particularly regarding 

disclosures related to FICC’s application 

of Minimum Charge at MBSD. The 

proposed rule changes would not 

advantage or disadvantage any 

particular Clearing Member of FICC or 

unfairly inhibit access to FICC’s 

services. FICC therefore does not believe 

these proposed changes would have any 

impact, or impose any burden, on 

competition. 


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8732 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 27 / Thursday, February 8, 2024 / Notices 

13 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A). 

14 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f). 15 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 

(C) Clearing Agency’s Statement on

Comments on the Proposed Rule

Change Received From Members,

Participants, or Others

FICC has not received or solicited any 

written comments relating to this 

proposal. If any additional written 

comments are received, they will be 

publicly filed as an Exhibit 2 to this 

filing, as required by Form 19b–4 and 

the General Instructions thereto. 

Persons submitting comments are 

cautioned that, according to Section IV 

(Solicitation of Comments) of the 

Exhibit 1A in the General Instructions to 

Form 19b–4, the Commission does not 

edit personal identifying information 

from comment submissions. 

Commenters should submit only 

information that they wish to make 

available publicly, including their 

name, email address, and any other 

identifying information. 

All prospective commenters should 

follow the Commission’s instructions on 

how to submit comments, available at 

www.sec.gov/regulatory-actions/how-tosubmit-comments. General questions 

regarding the rule filing process or 

logistical questions regarding this filing 

should be directed to the Main Office of 

the SEC’s Division of Trading and 

Markets at tradingandmarkets@sec.gov 

or 202–551–5777. 

FICC reserves the right not to respond 

to any comments received. 

III. Date of Effectiveness of the

Proposed Rule Change, and Timing for

Commission Action

The foregoing rule change has become 

effective pursuant to Section 

19(b)(3)(A) 13 of the Act and paragraph 

(f) 14 of Rule 19b–4 thereunder. At any

time within 60 days of the filing of the

proposed rule change, the Commission

summarily may temporarily suspend

such rule change if it appears to the

Commission that such action is

necessary or appropriate in the public

interest, for the protection of investors,

or otherwise in furtherance of the

purposes of the Act.

IV. Solicitation of Comments

Interested persons are invited to

submit written data, views and 

arguments concerning the foregoing, 

including whether the proposed rule 

change is consistent with the Act. 

Comments may be submitted by any of 

the following methods: 

Electronic Comments 

• Use the Commission’s internet

comment form (www.sec.gov/rules/ 

sro.shtml); or 

• Send an email to rule-comments@

sec.gov. Please include File Number SR– 

FICC–2024–002 on the subject line. 

Paper Comments 

• Send paper comments in triplicate

to Secretary, Securities and Exchange 

Commission, 100 F Street NE, 

Washington, DC 20549. 

All submissions should refer to File 

Number SR–FICC–2024–002. This file 

number should be included on the 

subject line if email is used. To help the 

Commission process and review your 

comments more efficiently, please use 

only one method. The Commission will 

post all comments on the Commission’s 

internet website (www.sec.gov/rules/ 

sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all 

subsequent amendments, all written 

statements with respect to the proposed 

rule change that are filed with the 

Commission, and all written 

communications relating to the 

proposed rule change between the 

Commission and any person, other than 

those that may be withheld from the 

public in accordance with the 

provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be 

available for website viewing and 

printing in the Commission’s Public 

Reference Room, 100 F Street NE, 

Washington, DC 20549 on official 

business days between the hours of 

10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Copies of the 

filing also will be available for 

inspection and copying at the principal 

office of FICC and on DTCC’s website 

(www.dtcc.com/legal/sec-rulefilings.aspx). Do not include personal 

identifiable information in submissions; 

you should submit only information 

that you wish to make available 

publicly. We may redact in part or 

withhold entirely from publication 

submitted material that is obscene or 

subject to copyright protection. All 

submissions should refer to File 

Number SR–FICC–2024–002 and should 

be submitted on or before February 29, 

2024. 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.15

Sherry R. Haywood, 

Assistant Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2024–02520 Filed 2–7–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION 

Meeting of the Interagency Task Force 

on Veterans Small Business 

Development 

AGENCY: U.S. Small Business 

Administration (SBA). 

ACTION: Notice of open Federal advisory 

committee meeting. 

SUMMARY: The SBA is issuing this notice 

to announce the date, time, and agenda 

for the next meeting of the Interagency 

Task Force on Veterans Small Business 

Development (IATF). 

DATES: Wednesday, March 6, 2024, from 

1 p.m. to 3 p.m. EST. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held 

virtually via Microsoft Teams. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The 

virtual meeting is open to the public; 

however advance notice of attendance is 

strongly encouraged. To RSVP and 

confirm attendance, the general public 

should email veteransbusiness@sba.gov 

with subject line, ‘‘RSVP for March 6, 

2024, IATF Virtual Public Meeting.’’ To 

submit a written comment, individuals 

should email veteransbusiness@sba.gov 

with subject line, ‘‘Response for March 

6, 2024, IATF Virtual Public Meeting’’ 

no later than February 23, 2024, or 

contact Timothy Green, Acting 

Associate Administrator, Office of 

Veterans Business Development (OVBD) 

at (202) 205–6773. Comments received 

in advanced will be addressed as time 

allows during the public comment 

period. All other submitted comments 

will be included in the meeting record. 

During the live meeting, those who wish 

to comment will be able to do so during 

the public comment period. Participants 

can join the meeting via computer at 

this link: https://bit.ly/IATF-Mar24 or 

by phone. Call in (audio only): Dial: +1 

206–413–7980: Phone Conference ID: 

974 812 225#. Special accommodation 

requests should be directed to OVBD at 

(202) 205–6773 or veteransbusiness@

sba.gov. All applicable documents will

be posted on the IATF website prior to

the meeting: https://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sba-locations/headquarters-offices/

office-veterans-businessdevelopment#sba-card-collection--

heading-7153. For more information on

veteran-owned small business programs,

please visit www.sba.gov/ovbd.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant

to section 10(a)(2) of the Federal

Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C.

appendix 2), SBA announces the

meeting of the Interagency Task Force

on Veterans Small Business

Development (IAFT). The IATF is

established pursuant to Executive Order


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